Retirement Life

Mon, 11 Apr, 2016Alex O'Brien

Why you should still set an alarm when you retire

Retirement life means never having to set an alarm for work again, right? Well, while it’s true that you won’t have to get up super early to hotfoot it to the office anymore, there is still some benefit to setting that alarm each and every day.

You’ve probably heard people talking about their body clock – usually this is in discussions about jet lag or living with newborn babies. But in fact your body clock will tend to be in much better shape if you wake up and go to bed at the same time each day.

A better night’s sleep

What you can expect to happen is that you should start to become tired at about the same time each night. While we’re not suggesting you need to give yourself a strict bedtime, it’s important to listen to your body’s cues for rest and not miss ‘the wave’ of tiredness, which can lead to a restless sleep.

A more productive day

Having a steady circadian rhythm (another term for your body clock) will make you more alert through the day as you aren’t tired from not getting enough sleep. You will also make the most of your day as you won’t be feeling the need for an afternoon nap.

Less need for sleeping in

Having your body adjust to waking at the same time each day, and ideally heading off to bed around the same time each night, means that you won’t feel the need for the weekend lie-in. As you won’t need to ‘catch up’ on sleep, you will be able to get up as normal and make the most of your weekend.

The right amount of sleep

After a while, you will be able to work out if what you are doing is giving you enough hours of sleep to be your most productive and alert. You will be able to adjust things so that if you are feeling sluggish in the mornings you might need to go to bed 30 minutes earlier from now on.